A Milan court has called for former Bank of Italy head Antonio Fazio to be sentenced to three and a half years in prison and fined €700,000 for banking crimes dating to 2005.
The request came as part of a trial that opened in February 2010 into Fazio's role in the takeover launched by insurer Unipol for Banca Nazionale del Lavoro (BNL) aimed at heading off Spanish bank BBVA.
The former governor resigned in 2005 amid a scandal stemming from a bid by Banca Popolare Italiana (BPI) for Banca Antonveneta when the Italian bank was trying to fend off an approach from then Dutch giant ABN Amro.
In a separate trial that began in 2008, Fazio is accused of having favoured BPI and Unipol so as to preserve Italian ownership of BNL and Banca Antonveneta, though he has always protested his innocence. Unipol's bid for BNL was rejected by the Bank of Italy after Fazio stepped down.
At today's hearing, the court requested that former Unipol chairman Giovanni Consorte serve four years and seven months and pay a €1.2m fine, as well as asking for Unipol to be ordered to pay a €975,000 penalty.
A verdict in the BPI-Antonveneta trial is expected at the end of the month.
